Upper buffer arrangement for railway cars



Nov. 4 1924.

G. E. COUTANT UPPER BUFFER ARRANGEMENT FOR' RAILWAY GARS Filed Aug. 3l 1923 wel:

Patented Nov. 4, 1924.

@NME

GEORGE E. COUTANT, F DECA'IUR, ILLINOIS.

UPPER BUFFER-ARRANGEMENT FOR RAILWAY CARS. A

Application filed August 31, 1323. Serial No. 660,290.

To all whom t may concern.' n

Be it known that I, GEORGE E. OoU'rAN'r, a citizen of the United States, residing at Decatur, in the county of Macon and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Upper Buffer Arrangements for Railway Cars, of which the following is a speciiication.

This invention relates to improvements in railway car vestibules, and more particularly to the upper buiiing devices for the dia-` phragm face plates of such vestibules.

These bufiing devices are designed to yieldingly maintain the diaphragm face plates in proper relative position and for restoring them to such position after displacement as the result of the cars passing over curves, crossings and irregularities in the tracks.

These buiiing devices as now constructed comprise a semi-elliptic spring interposed between the face plate and the end of the car. This spring in service is compressed and expands with corresponding movements of the diaphragm, and in this manner the plates of each pair of diaphragms are maintained in proper position. The opposite ends of the semi-elliptic spring have heretofore only loosely engaged through keepers or the like carried by the end of the car, the spring ends being downturned to prevent displacement thereof. See, for example, patents to Sisson, 1,097,195, May 19, 1914, and Lawler, 1,17 0,548, of February S, 1916. In service the ends of such springs frequently break off, rendering the device inoperative and necessitating repair or replacement. Another serious objection to this construction is the noise which the free ends of the spring produce in rubbing and knocking against the keepers.

One object of the present invention is to provide an upper buiiing device generally similar to those above described but embodying improved features of construction whereby the above mentioned objections are overcome, and, as a result of which, smoother and more noiseless and eicient operation is obtained.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art from a reading of the following specification, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein one form of the invention is illustrated. f

In the drawings t Figure 1 is a top plan view of the upper buer device of the present invention, showing' the same operatively mounted;-

Figure 2 is a similar view showing the position of the parts upon compression of the spring;

Figure 3 is a front elevation showing the device in operative position on a car;

Figure 4 is a detail view partly in section, showing the mounting rear of the face plate;

Figure 5 is a sectional View taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, and

Figure 6 is an enlarged sectional View taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 1.

Referring more in detail to the drawings. 10 designates the end portion of a car vestibule, 11 the usual bellows diaphragm, and 12 the face plate of said diaphragm. The semielliptic spring is shown at 13 and is made up of one or more leaves in the usual manner. Intermediate the ends of the spring 13, preferably at the center thereof, the same is provided with an encircling, two-piece band 14, secured thereto by means yof rivets or in any other suitable manner.` One piece, 14a, of this band is of inverted U-sha-pe and its down over the inner concave surface of the spring, its sides depending over the edges of the leaves thereof and projecting in the form of Vapertured ears beyond the spring at the opposite side thereof. The other piece, 14h, of the encircling band is in the 'form Iof a plate having a bearing groove 14c formed therein, this plate being secured against the outer or convex side of the spring in suchwise that the bearing groove 14c thereof is in alignment with ythe apertures in the depending ears of the other piece, 14a. Riveted or otherwise firmly secured to the inner surface of the face plate 12, adjacent the upper edge of the latter, is a bracket 15, also of U-shape in'cross-section, its sides projecting rearwardly from the face plate in a direction opposite to that in which the projecting sides of the member 14a ofthe band extend. rI`he bracket 15 is of such dimension as to receive between its side walls the apertured ears of the piece 14a and said side walls are also apertured. A pivot pin 16 entends through the apertures in the sides of bracket 15 and also through those in the depending ears of the piece 14EL and through the bearing groove in the piece 14 of the of the spring on the spring-encircling band. ln this manner the semi-elliptic spring is securely connected to the face plate, while at the same time being free to oscillate with respect thereto on the pivot pin 16. rlhe pivot pin is headed at one end and adapted to receive a cotter pin or other removable means at its other end, so that the spring may be readily removed at any time should occasion require.

Attached to the end portion of the vestibule in the vicinitv of the ends of the semielliptic spring 13 are plurality ot brackets 17 having projecting side walls 1S apertured near the outer ends to receiving pivot pins 19, also removable to facilitate dismantling.

Each end ot spring 13 is coiled or looped back upon itself as at 20, these loops each being nteriorily provided with steel bushings 21 or the like, through which pivot pins 22 extend.7 The pivot pins 22 at their outer ends engage suitable apertures in the arms 23 of shackles 24, said arms at their other ends being joined by an elongated bearing sleeve 25 through which the pivot pins 19, previously described, entend. It will thus be apparent that the ends oi the semi-elliptic spring 13 are positivelyT connected to the end portion of the car vestibule, the shackles 24 permitting ot the ends of the spring moving in an are back and 'forth as the spring is compressed and eX- pands. To prevent overthrow and to limit this movement of the ends of the spring, inwardly extending lugs 26 are formed on the sides of the brackets 17, these lugs being so positioned as to engage with the arms 23 of the shackles as the latter move back and forth upon compression or expansion of the spring. rlhe normal position or" the and its associated parts is shown in of the drawings, and in Fig. 2 the spring is shown under compression. lt will b observed that normally the shackles 2L1- incline inwardly from the pivot pins 19, resting against the inner sets 'or lugs 26. p Under compression, however,I the shackles are rocked outwardly and under maximum compression engage the outer set of lugs 25, as shown in Fig. 2. During this action of the spring and shackles the former 'tree to rock in either direction on a vertical axis by reason ot its pivotal connection to the faceplate.v Thus the tace plate mayv assume various angular positions without throwing the springout of alignment or imposing undue strain on either one of the shackle Fie". 1

connections.

spring illustrated except where limitations appear in the appended claims.

l laim 1. The con'ibination with the vestibule and diaphragm face plate oi a railway car, o'l a semi-elliptic spring interposed between said plate and vestibule, and means for limiting the movement of the outer ends of said spring both upon compression and eXpansion of the latter, said means comprising brackets carried by said vestibule and rockers attached to the ends of said spring and pivotaily connected to said brackets.

2. The combination with the vestibule and diaphragm tace plate of a railway car, of a semi-elliptic spring interposed between said plate and vestibule, and means for limiting the movement of the outer ends of said spring both upon compression and eXpansion of the latter, said means comprising shackles pivotally connected to said vesti bule and to the ends of said spring respectively.

3. The combination with the vestibule and diaphragm tace plate of a railway car, koit a semi-elliptic spring interposed between said slate and vestibule, and means for limiting he n'iovement of the outer ends of said pring both upon compression and expan- ,ion of the latter, said means comprising hsclrles pivotally connected to said vestibule aV d to the ends of said spring respectively, and n'ieans lior limiting'the movement of said shackles.

1l. The combination with the vestibule' and diaphragm tace plate of a railway car, of a semi-'elliptic spring interposed between said plate and vestibule, and means for limiting the movement ot the outer ends ot said spring both upon compression and espasion ot the said means comprising brackets carried by said vestibule and roelers attached to the ends ot said spring and pivotally connected to said brackets, and means for preventing` overthrow ot said rockers.

n 5. 'llhe combination with the vestibule and diaphragm face plate of a railway car, ot a semi-elliptic spring interposed between said plate and vestibule, and means for limiting the movement of the outer ends of said spring both upon compression and expansion of 'the latter, said means comprising brackets carried by said vestibule and rockers at in) C) tached to the ends of said spring and pivotally connected to said brackets, and means for preventing overthrow of said rockers, said last named means being in the form of lugs carried by said brackets.

6. The combination with the vestibule and diaphragm face plate of a railway car, of a semi-elliptic spring interposed between said plate and vestibule and being pivotally connected to both of said elements.

7. rlhe combination with the vestibule and diaphragm face plate of a railway car, of a semi-elliptic spring interposed between said plate and vestibule, said spring being attached at its opposite ends to movable members carried by said vestibule, and means for limiting the movement of said members in either direction.

8. The combination with the vestibule and diaphragm face plate of a railway car, of a semi-elliptic spring interposed between said plate and vestibule, a transversely grooved plate carried by said spring intermediate its GEORGE E. COUTANT. 

